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Monthly Archives: April 2012

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One of the best gifts you can give a college student is a care package during stressful times. And what week is more stressful than the week before finals?

While a care package during finals week is greatly appreciated, a care package the week before can be even more helpful to students. The week before finals is packed with long-term projects being due, last minute readings, and a general feeling of panic for most students. You still have homework, readings, and projects, but you also have to fit in reviewing for your upcoming tests.

While some of my friends are experiencing finals right now (good luck Iowa State friends!) my finals are not for another week. There can still be time to give your favorite college student a care package, depending on where they go to school.

If you don’t know what to put into a homemade care package, or if you don’t have time to go out and buy all the supplies, here are some good online options.

My freshman year of college, my mom bought me an 8 pack of their Fat Witch Brownies. They were absolutely delicious. So good that I bought some for my boyfriend a few weeks later, which he enjoyed. Though I may have eaten a few of his when I visited him. You can choose a variety pack or just stick to their original brownies. With 11 different types of brownies, you can find something for almost any sweet tooth.

I haven’t personally used this website, but I have heard good things about it. There are tons of different options– healthy, candy-filled, exam themed, spirit packs. The website also has an entire list of toys and trinkets you can add to the care packages to help customize them. If I had found this website in time for my boyfriend to get his before finals, I definitely would’ve gotten him the Brain and Grain.

While this package is a bit pricey, it has a lot of unique and helpful items for students cramming for exams. Not only is there candy, tea, baked goods, and other snacks, but it also includes pens, highlighters, a blue book, and other finals necessities. Started by college students who were sick of traditional care packages, Box-O-Box has been praised by many news organizations for interesting and quality boxes.

It was my best friend’s dream in high school to get an edible arrangement for her grad party. I have no idea what started the idea, or why she was so attached to it, but every time we watched the commercial, she was transfixed. Unfortunately her mom did not see the value in paying for fruit shaped into flower arrangements. While sending a college student a full edible arrangement is not the most practical thing, you can definitely send them some chocolate covered strawberries or apples. (Mom, if you’re reading this, take note). They are sweet but much more interesting than just plain old chocolate. Plus, we can pretend that we’re eating healthy– strawberries are still healthy even if they’re covered in chocolate, right?

My dad and I were buying paper towels at the grocery store when we saw Ziplock Zip’n Steam Microwave Cooking Bags. I had no idea these existed, and my dad and I were very excited to try it. I was … Continue reading →

Last semester, I tweeted “Puppy chow and How I Met Your Mother on Netflix are the only things getting me through dead week right now. #Ihaveaproblem #somuchpuppychow.” My cousin from New Jersey read that tweet and thought I was legitimately eating food … Continue reading →

It is nearly impossible for me to eat just one bowl of cereal at a time. I cannot get enough of bacon, egg, and cheese bagels or scrambled eggs with salsa and cheese. Hashbrown casserole is the greatest thing my school’s dining center has to offer.

However, my love for breakfast food often conflicts with my love for sleeping in. I am very serious about my sleep. Not once in my college career have I pulled an all-nighter. The least sleep I’ve ever gotten since I’ve been in college is probably 6 hours. I do everything possible to not have to stay up late on school nights.

One of my favorite things about being in college is the fact that when I come home, my parents almost treat me as a guest. Almost being the key word. They’re excited enough to have me home that they take … Continue reading →

A few months ago, I was feeling pretty sick. My throat hurt, my nose was runny, and my body ached. I asked my mom what I should eat for dinner, and she tried to convince me to eat some soup. … Continue reading →

As I mentioned in my post about getting back in shape, unsalted, unbuttered popcorn is one of my new favorite snacks to eat after a run. Not only is it better for you than normal microwave popcorn, but it is … Continue reading →

I did not have a pleasant experience with my random roommate I was assigned last year. The experience was so unpleasant that my parents let me get a single dorm room this year. While I enjoy having my own space much more, there is one thing I miss about my old dorm: the mini fridge.

My roommate provided the fridge. I never knew how good I had it until this year when I had to get my own fridge. My current fridge does not have a functioning freezer. There is a tiny compartment that is slightly colder than the fridge, but it is not much of a help. I really only use it to put water bottles in when I need them to get cold more quickly than they would sitting in the fridge.

In elementary school, most of my friends were food snobs. Well–as much as 10 and 12 year olds can be. They refused to eat ‘hot’ lunch (a.k.a. the lunch the school cooked). They always brought in their own ‘cold’ lunches. My parents did not pack me my lunches and I was too lazy to do it myself. Plus, I honestly enjoyed the square pizzas, the beef and cheese nachos, the Italian dunkers. My friends always looked at my meal in disgust. They’d tell me it looked like puke or that the cheese looked like plastic. Whatever, I liked it. Or I at least tolerated it.

The dining center at my school seems to just give up on the weekends. Saturday lunch and dinner is mediocre at best and the dining center only serves food until 2:00 pm on Sunday. My boyfriend was visiting and we didn’t want to go out to lunch, but I also didn’t want to subject him to the weekend food at the dining center. I was browsing Food Gawker and found a Turkey Focaccia Club recipe and decided that was exactly what I wanted for lunch. He agreed that it sounded good, so we left my dorm to go buy groceries.